Written Answers Friday 15 January 2010

Scottish Executive

Agriculture

Bill Wilson (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will consider investigating the practices identified in the Soil Association’s report, Soil Carbon and Organic Farming: A review of the evidence on the relationship between agriculture and soil carbon sequestration, and how organic farming can contribute to climate change mitigation and adaptation , as a means of helping Scotland meet its emissions reduction targets.

Richard Lochhead: The Scottish Government welcomes the Soil Association’s report. It is a useful contribution to the debate, and evidence base, informing the implementation of our Farming for a Better Climate (FBC) action plan ( www.farmingforabetterclimate.org ). FBC focuses on mitigation measures which can be delivered on-farm and which deliver "win-wins" – good for the farming business and good for the environment, including carbon sequestration. As part of the policy making process, officials plan to meet with Soil Association Scotland colleagues to discuss the detail of the report, and its relevance for Scotland.

Agriculture

John Farquhar Munro (Ross, Skye and Inverness West) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what the total cost has been of developing the Crofting Reform (Scotland) Bill to date, also showing the cost of (a) the Committee of Inquiry on Crofting, (b) analysing the results of the Draft Crofting Reform (Scotland) Bill consultation, (c) staff time in drawing up proposals and drafting the Bill, (d) the public launch, (e) travel and subsistence costs and (f) any other costs.

John Farquhar Munro (Ross, Skye and Inverness West) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what the total cost was of the Draft Crofting Reform (Scotland) Bill, also showing the cost of (a) staff time in drawing up proposals and drafting the draft Bill, (b) publication and distribution of documents, (c) advertising and publicity, (d) holding consultation meetings, (e) travel and subsistence costs and (f) any other costs.

Roseanna Cunningham: The total cost of developing the Crofting Reform (Scotland) Bill to date is approximately £1,023,658. A breakdown is provided in the following table. The Committee of Inquiry on Crofting was established by the previous administration during the 2006 Crofting Reform (etc) Bill. The committee of inquiry was established from December 2006 and ran till May 2008. Subsequent government costs have been incurred in taking forward the Committee of Inquiry on Crofting recommendations.

  

 
Cost (£)


Committee of Inquiry on Crofting
654,647


Staff time in drawing up proposals and draft Bill
174,099


Publication and distribution of documents
34,364


Holding consultation meetings
21,755


Advertising and publicity
6,836


Analysing the results of the draft Crofting Reform (Scotland) Bill consultation
14,232


Staff time in drawing up proposals and Bill
106,042


Public launch of Bill
3,032


Travel and Subsistence
8,651


Total
1,023,658

Agriculture

Liam McArthur (Orkney) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what its position is on the fairness and proportionality of the single farm payment penalty system.

Richard Lochhead: The rules for CAP payment reductions under cross-compliance are laid down in European legislation. In general breaches of cross-compliance should result in a reduction of 3% being applied to a beneficiaries payments for one year under the Single Farm Payment Scheme, Scottish Beef Calf Scheme, Energy Crop Scheme, Protein Crop Premium, Less Favoured Area Support Scheme and certain management options claimed under the Land Managers Options Scheme and Rural Priorities.

  Prior to 2009, most breaches of cross-compliance in Scotland were resulting in a 1% reduction or a warning letter as this was considered to be appropriate for the seriousness of the breaches that were being found. We have now been forced to increase the payment reduction levels under cross-compliance because recent EC audits in Scotland, the UK and across Europe, have ruled the current penalty systems too lenient.

  These increases must be implemented to avoid potential, costly penalties on the Scottish Government from the EU which could have a detrimental and unjust effect on the level of funds available to all farmers and other land managers. The cross-compliance payment reduction systems in England, Wales and Northern Ireland were also tightened up in 2009 following their EC audits.

Agriculture

Liam McArthur (Orkney) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had with stakeholders regarding the single farm payment penalty system.

Richard Lochhead: Stakeholders were alerted to the review of payment reduction levels in January 2009, following the audits in England and Wales in 2008. We had meetings with them and kept in touch as the review progressed. The revised cross-compliance payment reduction system was discussed with stakeholders at a meeting on 5 November 2009, prior to writing to land managers later that month.

Agriculture

Liam McArthur (Orkney) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive when it next expects to meet stakeholders to discuss the single farm payment penalty system.

Richard Lochhead: We have regular meetings with stakeholders and these matters will be discussed if appropriate. Although no meetings are scheduled at present to discuss this specific topic, we expect this to be raised at forthcoming meetings.

Agriculture

Liam McArthur (Orkney) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to ensure that penalties imposed under the Single Farm Payment Scheme are fair and proportionate.

Richard Lochhead: All cross-compliance inspections are carried out according to clearly laid down procedures across Scotland and the results and any penalties that are applied are monitored on a national basis.

Agriculture

Liam McArthur (Orkney) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what research it is undertaking to examine the fairness and proportionality of fines imposed under the Single Farm Payment Scheme.

Richard Lochhead: We are looking at the detailed results of European Commission audits across the rest of Europe and speaking to other member states who have been audited to confirm the position in their countries.

Agriculture

Liam McArthur (Orkney) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what support it is providing to farmers who believe that they may have been disproportionately penalised under the Single Farm Payment Scheme.

Richard Lochhead: Land managers who are penalised under cross-compliance can submit an appeal under the new EU Rural Payments Appeal Procedure which was launched on the 20 November 2009.

Agriculture

Jim Hume (South of Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how much it planned to contribute to the Scotland Rural Development Programme 2007-13 at the start of the programme, also expressed as a percentage.

Richard Lochhead: The total value of the Scotland Rural Development Programme at the time of approval was just under €2.3 billion, or £1.6 billion at the £/€ exchange rate prevailing at that time. The Scottish Government’s contribution was planned to be around 68% of that amount at €1.55 billion.

Agriculture

Jim Hume (South of Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what the projections are for its spending on the Scotland Rural Development Programme 2007-13 over the course of the programme, also expressed in percentages.

Richard Lochhead: At 1 January 2009, the projected spend on the Scotland Rural Development Programme (SRDP) from its commencement in 2007, to the end of the current Spending Review Period at 31 March 2011, was £751.1 million. Of this, £511.8 million (68%) is from Scottish Government and £239 million (32%) is from the EU.

  Financial year 2010-11 is the last in the current three year Spending Review period. At this stage we cannot pre-empt discussions on the profile of SRDP expenditure in the next spending review period prior to ministerial consideration and Scottish Parliamentary scrutiny in relation to the budget setting process, or indeed knowing what the overall envelope of resources available to the Scottish Government will be.

Agriculture

Jim Hume (South of Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what the projections were as at 1 January 2009 for the (a) national and (b) European spend on the Scotland Rural Development Programme 2007-13 until the end of 2009, broken down by programme components.

Richard Lochhead: The projections for expenditure for financial year 2009-10 for the Scotland Rural Development Programme from the Scottish Government’s budget documents total £218.3 million. Of this, £146.6 million (67.2%) is from domestic sources and £71.6 million (32.8%) is from the EU. Total predicted expenditure for 2009-10 by programme component is as follows:

  

Scotland Rural Development Budget Component
Total £m


Business Development
33.4


Less Favoured Area Support Scheme
61.0


Agri-environmental Measures
58.3


Forestry
32.6


Rural Enterprise
18.2


Rural Communities
8.7


Leader
5.8


Technical Assistance
0.3


Total
218.3

Agriculture

Tavish Scott (Shetland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive for what reason it does not publish the national score benchmarks, which determine an application’s success under the Scotland Rural Development Programme, before the date of the meetings of the regional proposal assessment committees that consider the applications.

Richard Lochhead: The scoring benchmarks under the Rural Priorities element of the Scotland Rural Development Programme are agreed by a national committee, in advance of regional assessment committee meetings, and are intended as a guide for the regional committees.

  Regional committees retain the discretion, in exceptional circumstances, to approve cases below the threshold, or reject cases above the threshold, taking account of the full range of local circumstances.

  Individual applicants can obtain information on request from their case officer, on scoring thresholds, and how their own case was scored.

  To date we have not received any request to publish the national thresholds, but would be happy to do so.

Agriculture

Tavish Scott (Shetland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how long after meetings of regional proposal assessment committees it has made its decisions to endorse or overturn the committees’ recommendations to grant aid under the Scotland Rural Development Programme, broken down into each (a) round of applications since the programme became operational and (b) committee area.

Richard Lochhead: The Regional Proposal Assessment Committee (RPAC) system only relates to the Rural Priorities element of the Scotland Rural Development Programme (SRDP). We endeavour to make decisions on RPAC recommendations as soon as possible after the final committee has sat. However, there are a number of internal procedures to be followed in order to collate and validate the accuracy of the figures before the recommendations can be considered. As the recommendations from all regions are considered by the Scottish Government within the same timescale, there is no regional breakdown of the figures.

  The following table sets out, for each round, the date of the last RPAC meeting and the date of the formal announcement of the results.

  

RPAC (last day)
Announcement


26 August 2008
11 September 2008


31 October 2008
26 November 2008


9 December 2008
29 December 2008


26 February 2009
2 April 2009


14 August 2009
16 September 2009


27 November 2009
7 January 2010

Agriculture

Tavish Scott (Shetland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how long it has taken, after announcing the successful applications for grant aid under the Scotland Rural Development Programme, to send contracts to the successful applicants, broken down by regional proposal assessment committee areas.

Richard Lochhead: We are not able to report average contract issue times for each region. We issue contracts for successful Rural Priorities applications as soon as possible after approval is given. The time taken to issue contracts can be affected by a number of factors, including the complexity of the case, the accuracy of the information provided by the applicant and changes to payment rates. In such cases, officials remain in contact with applicants to keep them informed of the situation.

  Any applicant with concerns should speak to their case officer in the first instance.

Agriculture

Tavish Scott (Shetland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how long it has taken to review the tenders for grant aid for capital projects made under the Scotland Rural Development Programme, broken down into each (a) round of applications since the programme became operational and (b) regional proposal assessment committee areas.

Richard Lochhead: The consideration of all supporting documentation is an integral part of the project assessment process. All applications for grant are considered within the published framework and timescales for the assessment of applications. These timescales may vary due to the size and complexity of cases. Further details are available on the Rural Priorities website at:

  http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/farmingrural/SRDP/RuralPriorities.

  For information on the time taken between assessment rounds and the announcement of results, I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-30514, on 15 January 2010. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx.

Agriculture

Tavish Scott (Shetland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the formal guidelines it issues to applicants for grant aid under the Scotland Rural Development Programme include a requirement or recommendation that applicants’ bridging loan arrangements should be made with a commercial bank.

Richard Lochhead: There is no specific recommendation or requirement in the guidance for the Rural Priorities element of the Scotland Rural Development Programme regarding the arrangements for any bridging loan that may be necessary.

  Ultimately it is for applicants to provide adequate evidence that sufficient match funding is available to enable the project to go forward.

Agriculture

Tavish Scott (Shetland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how many applications were made in 2009 to the Scotland Rural Development Programme by Shetland applicants; how many of these included agri-environment proposals, and how many of the agri-environment applications were (a) successful and (b) rejected.

Richard Lochhead: In 2009, 113 applications were made by Shetland applicants for funding under the Rural Priorities element of the Scotland Rural Development Programme. Ninety-one of these included agri-environment options.

  (a) 63 proposals with an agri-environment element gained approval, either in full or in part.

  (b) 28 proposals had their agri-environment element rejected.

Allotments (Scotland) Act 1892

Nanette Milne (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many local authorities are collecting rents for allotments using regulations that have not been confirmed by the Scottish Ministers in terms of section 6(1) of the Allotments (Scotland) Act 1892.

John Swinney: Information is not held centrally on whether local authorities are collecting rents for allotments under regulations made in terms of section 6(1) of the Allotments (Scotland) Act 1892, which have not been confirmed by ministers as required by section 6(1). Any such collection is a matter for individual authorities.

Allotments (Scotland) Act 1892

Nanette Milne (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether local authority allotment tenants who have been charged rent as a result of the implementation of regulations that have not been confirmed by the Scottish Ministers in terms of section 6(1) of the Allotments (Scotland) Act 1892 are entitled to have these rents repaid to them.

John Swinney: A local authority would not be entitled to collect rent under regulations that had not been formally confirmed by Scottish Ministers in terms of section 6(1) of the Allotment (Scotland) Act 1892. Regulations made under this provision have no legal effect without ministerial confirmation. It would be for the local authority to resolve with its allotment holders the issue of rent collected in this manner.

Animal Welfare

Robin Harper (Lothians) (Green): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to compel the operators of aquaculture and fisheries equipment to fit and use benign acoustic deterrent devices to discourage seals and other predators from approaching stock or equipment.

Robin Harper (Lothians) (Green): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to ensure that licences to shoot seals are granted only after all other non-lethal alternatives have been tried and exhausted; how this will be determined, and whether it will introduce a minimum standard for the use of non-lethal alternatives and prescribe best practice and technology in this area.

Richard Lochhead: The Scottish Government through the Marine (Scotland) Bill will introduce a completely new seal licence system for Scotland. This new system will include consideration of the use of existing non-lethal measures (i.e. anti-predator nets and acoustic deterrent devices) and their effectiveness. It is intended that seal licences should in normal circumstances be granted only where non-lethal measures are not effective. This will ensure lethal measures will be licensed as a last resort.

  The Scottish Government is researching best practice in non-lethal measures in order to be able to identify effective technology, which does not cause harm to other marine species such as cetaceans. The intention is that this should inform the requirement of the seal licensing system on non-lethal alternatives, including best practice and minimum standards.

Child Protection

Rhona Brankin (Midlothian) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many significant case reviews have been carried out in each of the last 10 years, broken down by local authority.

Adam Ingram: In Scotland, since 2007 a significant case review has been undertaken in those instances identified in the Scottish Government’s national guidance, Protecting Children and Young People: Interim Guidance for Child Protection Committees for Conducting a Significant Case Review (2007) . It is the responsibility of local child protection committees to oversee such reviews. Since 1999 there have been 101 significant case reviews in Scotland.

  

Child Protection Committee
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
Total


Angus
0
0
0
0
0
0
2
0
0
0
0
2


Argyll and Bute
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
3
0
0
0
3


Clackmannanshire
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0


Dumfries and Galloway
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
2
1
0
3


Dundee
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
2
3


East Ayrshire
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
3


East Dunbartonshire
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1


East Lothian
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
1
2


East Renfrewshire
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0


Edinburgh
1
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
2
3
2
10


Falkirk
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1


Fife
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
2
1
2
3
8


Glasgow
2
0
2
0
2
3
4
2
0
2
3
20


Highland
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
1
1
1
5


Inverclyde
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1


Midlothian
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
1
3


North East Scotland
0
0
0
0
1
4
0
4
2
0
3
14


North Ayrshire
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0


North Lanarkshire
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
2
4


Orkney
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
1


Perth and Kinross
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1


Renfrewshire
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
2


Scottish Borders
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0


Shetland
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0


South Ayrshire
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0


South Lanarkshire
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
1
0
1
1
5


Stirling
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1


West Dunbartonshire
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
2
3


West Lothian
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
2
1
0
3


Western Isles
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
2
0
0
2


Total
3
0
3
0
5
9
10
15
15
14
27
101



  Note: *North East Scotland CPC covers areas Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire and Moray.

Cities

Murdo Fraser (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what the geographic areas are of Scotland’s six city regions and what towns are included in each geographic area.

John Swinney: The geographic areas covered by city regions in Scotland are not uniquely defined. For example, the former Cities Growth Fund (the funding for which is no longer earmarked and, since 1 April 2008, has been included within the General Capital Grant paid by the Scottish Government to local authorities in Scotland) allocated funding directly to the councils containing the six formally designated cities in Scotland (Aberdeen City Council for Aberdeen, Dundee City Council for Dundee, the City of Edinburgh Council for Edinburgh, Glasgow City Council for Glasgow, Highland Council for Inverness and Stirling Council for Stirling). These authorities, in consultation with others including local communities and neighbouring authorities, each then drew up a published city vision plan to allocate funding within what each determined was the appropriate city region for their area.

Climate Change

George Foulkes (Lothians) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the First Minister plans to visit the Maldives to follow up the commitments made to that country at the UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen.

Stewart Stevenson: The First Minister hopes to visit the Maldives around the time of his trip to the Commonwealth Games in Delhi, although no arrangements have been confirmed at this time.

Climate Change

George Foulkes (Lothians) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive on what date the First Minister wrote to invite representatives of the Maldives Government to meet him to discuss climate change at the UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen and whether it will make the invitation available on its website.

Stewart Stevenson: The First Minister was approached on 9 November 2009, with a request that a telephone call be set up for the First Minister and the President to discuss the Climate Change (Scotland) Act 2009 and preparations for the UN climate change conference in Copenhagen.

Climate Change

George Foulkes (Lothians) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what commitments the First Minister made to the Maldives Government at the UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen in respect of tackling climate change.

Stewart Stevenson: The First Minister signed a joint statement on climate change with President Nasheed of the Maldives while in Copenhagen. The text of the statement reads:

  Joint Statement on Climate Change from the Scottish Government and the Government of the Maldives.

  We agree that:

  Climate change is the most serious environmental challenge faced by the global community, posing an urgent and far-reaching threat to individuals and communities across the world.

  The effects of climate change will be felt most acutely by people who are already in vulnerable situations because of various factors, including geography. This threat is particularly pronounced in many of the Island Nations of the world, typified by the Maldives.

  Addressing climate change can deliver significant economic, social and environmental benefits. The creation of quality jobs through the transition to a low-carbon economy represents a major economic opportunity.

  Action on climate change should centre on mitigation (reducing greenhouse gas emissions), adaptation (resilience to changes in the climate) and communication (of climate change messages).

  The action taken by both the Maldives and Scotland in terms of action and legislation exemplifies the types of measures necessary to meet the serious threats posed by climate change to our nations.

  Scotland will:

  Promote and support implementation of the Climate Change (Scotland) Act, which reflects international best practice in setting mitigation targets by covering all the internationally recognised greenhouse gases and emissions from international aviation and shipping with a 2020 interim target of 42% emissions cuts towards an ultimate goal of 80% emissions reductions by 2050.

  Help Scotland deliver its responsibilities for providing advice and information, and sharing its collective knowledge and expertise, as part of international assistance and co-operation in meeting the global challenge of climate change. An example of this is in relation to Scotland’s Climate Change Adaptation Framework, which offers a model for a strategic approach for integrating adaptation at a national level, with the potential for knowledge transfer on capacity-building.

  The Maldives will:

  Promote and support implementation of the Maldives own climate change programme, including a target to be carbon neutral within ten years, adaptation, renewable energy and research.

  Together we will:

  Recognise the potential of the low-carbon economy of the future.

  Work together to communicate the urgency of global action to tackle climate change and for agreement at Copenhagen demonstrating the action that needs to be taken as a matter of urgency.

  Undertake to develop and deepen the relationship between our nations and the need to further co-operate in meeting the challenges and opportunities posed by climate change.

  First Minister Alex Salmond, Scotland.

  President Mohamed Nasheed, Republic of Maldives.

Climate Change

George Foulkes (Lothians) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many of its staff will be working on its climate change programme with the Maldives Government during 2010, broken down by directorate.

Stewart Stevenson: There is no specific staffing provision to work on co-operation with the Maldives Government on climate change during 2010. The Scottish European Green Energy Centre in Aberdeen is engaging with the Maldives on renewable energy, and support for this programme will be provided by existing resources, primarily from the Business, Enterprise and Energy Directorate, with additional support as appropriate from the Climate Change and Water Industry Directorate and the Culture, External Affairs and Tourism Directorate.

Climate Change

George Foulkes (Lothians) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it plans to make funding available to support (a) voluntary organisations and (b) faith groups to engage with civic society in the Maldives on climate change projects.

Stewart Stevenson: There are currently no plans to make funding available to support voluntary organisations or faith groups specifically to engage with civic society in the Maldives on climate change projects.

Digital Technology

Peter Peacock (Highlands and Islands) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-29269 by Jim Mather on 3 December 2009, when it expects discussions between officials and others on the most effective mechanisms to advance the LEADER broadband programme to be completed and made public.

Roseanna Cunningham: LEADER local action group chairs have been asked to consider the best options to deliver EU Economic Recovery funding for broadband by 23 February 2010. Other delivery options under the SRDP are also being explored.

Economy

Jeremy Purvis (Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how many jobs it estimates have been created or supported by its (a) economic recovery plan, (b) economic strategy and (c) accelerated capital investment and how these have been measured.

John Swinney: The government economic strategy is the overarching strategy that focuses the activity of government, and the public sector in its widest sense, on increasing sustainable economic growth and on addressing the long-term gap in Scotland’s economic growth performance compared to many of its competitors. Progress against the government economic strategy is measured through a set of challenging long-term targets.

  The economic recovery plan is firmly rooted within the government economic strategy, and through the economic recovery plan the Scottish Government is ensuring that every area of government activity supports our commitments to deliver economic recovery and long-term sustainable growth by: supporting jobs and our communities; strengthening Scotland’s education and skills, and investing in innovation and the industries of the future. Estimates of the number of jobs supported by the actions within the economic recovery plan, including the accelerated capital spending programme, are contained within the Economic Recovery Plan: Update document published on 29 October 2009.

Economy

Jeremy Purvis (Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what measures are in place to help local authorities grow their own economies.

Jeremy Purvis (Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what measures are in place to help local authorities contribute to Scotland’s economic growth.

John Swinney: The Scottish Government economic strategy sets out our approach to achieve our central purpose of sustainable economic growth. This overarching strategy sets the direction for the public sector in Scotland.

  We have taken forward the principles of the government economic strategy through an economic recovery plan. This plan helps ensure that all Scottish Government activity is aligned to position us for recovery. We are continuing to work with our partners in local government and the agencies to ensure there is a unified effort across the public sector.

Education

Gavin Brown (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many primary school pupils have been sent home as a result of alcohol misuse in each of the last five years, broken down by local authority area.

Keith Brown: Nationally, the number of primary school pupils recorded as being temporarily excluded in the annual National Statistics report on Exclusions as a result of alcohol misuse in each of the last five years is:

  

2003-04
2004-05
2005-06
2006-07
2007-08


0
5 or less
5 or less
6
12



  Figures are presented nationally to reduce the risk of individuals being identified through the publication of these statistics. In the vast majority of local authorities, there are no primary school pupils recorded as being temporarily excluded as a result of alcohol misuse.

Energy Efficiency

Nanette Milne (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many households are awaiting the installation of home insulation under the free home insulation scheme, broken down by local authority area.

Alex Neil: As at 3 January 2010, the number of households by local authority area that have requested insulation measures from the programme is as follows:

  

Local Authority
Insulation Measure Requests


Angus
508


Comhairle nan Eilean Siar
539


Dundee
532


Edinburgh
782


Fife
902


Glasgow
493


Highland
397


Orkney
125


South Lanarkshire
161


Stirling
371


Total
4,810



  In addition, home insulation scheme assessors have identified clients eligible for assistance under the Scottish Government’s Energy Assistance Package or have referred clients, through their own choice, to other support measures available under the Carbon Emissions Reduction Target (CERT). These are detailed as follows:

  

Local Authority
Referred to EAP/CERT Support Measures


Angus
130


Comhairle nan Eilean Siar
232


Dundee
73


Edinburgh
199


Fife
262


Glasgow
158


Highland
108


Orkney
12


South Lanarkshire
18


Stirling
124


Total
1,316

Energy Efficiency

Nanette Milne (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many households are awaiting the installation of home insulation under the free home insulation scheme, broken down by Scottish Parliament constituency.

Alex Neil: As at 3 January, the number of households by parliamentary constituency that have requested insulation measures from the programme is shown in the following table. It is not possible to provide a further breakdown between the multiple constituencies which form part of the Highland and Glasgow/South Lanarkshire local authority programmes.

  

Parliamentary Constituency
Local Authority
Insulation Measure Requests


Angus
Angus
508


Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross/Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber
Highland
397


Central Fife
Fife
902


Comhairle nan Eilean Siar
Comhairle nan Eilean Siar
539


Dundee East
Dundee
532


Edinburgh East and Musselburgh
Edinburgh
782


Glasgow Cathcart/Glasgow Pollok/Glasgow Rutherglen
Glasgow 
  (Cathcart/Pollok)
South Lanarkshire (Rutherglen)
654


Orkney
Orkney
125


Stirling
Stirling
371


Total
 
4,810

Enterprise

Robin Harper (Lothians) (Green): To ask the Scottish Executive how many and what contracts have been placed by Scotland Excel.

Robin Harper (Lothians) (Green): To ask the Scottish Executive what the total value is of all contracts placed with Scotland Excel.

Robin Harper (Lothians) (Green): To ask the Scottish Executive what firms (a) have been contracted by Scotland Excel and (b) previously fulfilled these contracts.

Robin Harper (Lothians) (Green): To ask the Scottish Executive what the net loss or gain to businesses has been as a result of the placement of contracts by Scotland Excel as of the latest date for which information is available.

John Swinney: This is a matter for Scotland Excel to answer and should be referred to:

  Dorothy Cowie, Director, Scotland Excel, Unit 5, Anchor Mill, 7 Thread Street, Paisley, PA1 1JR.

Finance

Kenneth Gibson (Cunninghame North) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the cost will be in each year from 2010-11 onwards for which information is available to (a) each NHS board, (b) each local authority and (c) the remainder of the Scottish block grant of the Chancellor of the Exchequer’s decision to increase employers’ national insurance contributions by 0.5% from 2011.

John Swinney: Employers and employees’ National Insurance contributions are to increase by a further 0.5% from 1 April 2011. This is in addition to the 0.5% increase from 1 April 2011 announced at PBR 2008. In total, this will mean an estimated additional pressure on Scottish Budgets from 2011-12 of approximately £104 million.

  The estimated additional costs on individual areas of the public sector are £36 million for NHS, £57 million for local government, £10 million for the police and fire services and £1 million for the Scottish Government.

  The following tables show the split by local authority and NHS board:

  

Local Authority
1% increase.


£m


Aberdeen City
1.9


Aberdeenshire
2.6


Angus
1.1


Argyll and Bute
1.1


Clackmannanshire
0.6


Dumfries and Galloway
1.6


Dundee City
1.7


East Ayrshire
1.4


East Dunbartonshire
1.2


East Lothian
0.9


East Renfrewshire
1.0


Edinburgh (City of)
4.7


Eilean Siar
0.5


Falkirk
1.6


Fife
4.5


Glasgow City
6.6


Highland
2.1


Inverclyde
0.9


Midlothian
0.9


Moray
0.9


North Ayrshire
1.6


North Lanarkshire
3.6


Orkney Islands
0.5


Perth and Kinross
1.4


Renfrewshire
1.8


Scottish Borders
1.2


Shetland Islands
0.7


South Ayrshire
1.2


South Lanarkshire
2.9


Stirling
1.0


West Dunbartonshire
1.2


West Lothian
1.9


Total Councils
56.8



  

 
Estimated Additional Cost (£m)


NHS Ayrshire and Arran
2.1


NHS Borders
0.7


NHS Dumfries and Galloway
0.9


NHS Fife
1.8


NHS Forth Valley
1.4


NHS Grampian
3.2


NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde
9.2


NHS Highland
1.8


NHS Lanarkshire
2.6


NHS Lothian
6.0


NHS Orkney
0.1


NHS Shetland
0.1


NHS Tayside
2.9


NHS Western Isles
0.2


NHS 24
0.3


NHS Education for Scotland
0.1


NHS Health Scotland
0.1


NHS National Services Scotland
0.9


NHS Quality Improvement Scotland
0.1


National Waiting Times Centre
0.3


Scottish Ambulance Service
1.3


The State Hospitals Board for Scotland
0.2


Total for NHS Boards
36.3

Finance

Jeremy Purvis (Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive which projects are shovel ready, as stated by the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Sustainable Growth in the news release, Pre-Budget Report , on 9 December 2009.

John Swinney: The Scottish Government was ready to deploy accelerated capital in the order of £300 million for the immediate benefit of the Scottish economy, protecting jobs and promoting recovery. Projects in key areas such as affordable housing and enterprise which would have benefited from additional funding in 2010-11 will now not receive an early injection of capital.

Finance

Jeremy Purvis (Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive which infrastructure projects are at risk due to a lack of accelerated capital in the pre-Budget report.

John Swinney: The failure of the pre-Budget report to contain any further capital acceleration means that infrastructure projects will now not receive an early injection of capital.

First Minister

Mike Rumbles (West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what costs have been incurred by the First Minister’s office in respect of (a) accommodation, (b) travel, (c) transport, (d) stationery and (e) hospitality since May 2007.

John Swinney: The First Minister’s office costs for the last three years can be found in the following table. It should be noted that the figures in 2007-08 represent the change of Administration. Costs for 2009-10 are not yet available.

  

 
2006-07
2007-08 (Part Year)
2007-08 (Part Year)
2008-09


Staff
£556,802
£52,188
£471,222
£547,367


Travel and Subsistence (including accommodation and transport)
£39,214
£3,490
£38,345
£41,977


Hospitality
£1,288
£703
£1,678
£153


Administration (including stationery)
£41,232
£17,333
£12,617
£30,443


Total
£638,356
£73,714
£523,862
£619,940

Flooding

Murdo Fraser (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what advice it and its agencies are giving to communities and farmers at risk of flooding once the snow thaws.

Richard Lochhead: Although a thaw is now taking place in many parts of Scotland, there is currently no indication that the rate of thawing will result in severe flooding problems. Nevertheless, people should heed the advice on SEPA’s website and be prepared for flooding. SEPA’s flood warning staff continue to work closely with the Met Office and people should look out for any flood watches or warnings which may be issued on SEPA’s Floodline service. In response to the severe weather, the Scottish Government has convened its resilience room, and all strategic co-ordinating groups are providing updates on potential flooding problems.

Genetically Modified Crops

John Scott (Ayr) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has expressed a view to the European Commission or the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on proposals to allow member states to make their own decisions on GM approvals based on socio-economic criteria and, if so, what that view was.

Richard Lochhead: The Scottish Government has long argued that socio-economic criteria should be taken into account in the European GM approvals process. The government has expressed this view to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on numerous occasions at both official and ministerial level. Although the European Commission is seeking views on the subject, it has not made any formal proposals to date.

Health

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive for what reason optometrists are not used to carry out pre-school vision screening in cases where orthoptists are not available.

Shona Robison: Where orthoptists are not available, it is the responsibility of NHS boards to make the most appropriate local arrangements to carry out pre-school vision screening. These arrangements should be made based on clinical effectiveness, availability of and ease of access to other health professionals, including optometrists.

  The Scottish Government Health Directorate will shortly issue a Chief Executive Letter (CEL) to reinforce the recommendations for implementation contained in Health for all children 4: Guidance on Implementation in Scotland and this will include further advice on the actions required by NHS boards to find solutions to vision screening issues where no orthoptist screening programme is achievable locally in the short term.

Health

Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many people have been treated at emergency units due to falls during the recent cold weather conditions and what proportion was represented by individuals aged over 60.

Nicola Sturgeon: The precise number of people attending NHS emergency services due to falls during the recent severe weather is not available from centrally collected, validated statistics.

  Please refer to the answer to the question S3O-9094 on 14 January 2010 for high level management information provided by NHS boards and figures published by the Scottish Ambulance Service. Note; this does not include age-related information. The answer to the oral parliamentary question is available on the Parliaments website, the official report can be viewed at:

  http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/business/officialReports/meetingsParliament/or-10/sor0114-02.htm#Col22786.

  Official statistics on accident and emergency attendances up to 31 December 2009 will be published by Information Services Division on 24 February 2010 http://www.isdscotland.org/isd/4024.html.

Health

Gil Paterson (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the average NHS expenditure is on a person in receipt of specialist palliative care services.

Shona Robison: Information on average NHS expenditure on a person in receipt of specialist palliative care services is not held centrally.

  NHS boards are responsible for the planning and provision of NHS services for their populations and it is for NHS boards to agree appropriate funding of care providers within their board geographical area.

  A wide range of health professionals are needed to care for patients in palliative care and this care can be provided in a variety of settings, including patients’ homes, hospitals, care homes and in the independent healthcare sector via hospices, which are partly funded by the NHS.

Health

Gil Paterson (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the average NHS expenditure is on a person in receipt of generalist palliative care services.

Shona Robison: Information on average NHS expenditure on a person in receipt of generalist palliative care services is not held centrally.

  NHS boards are responsible for the planning and provision of NHS services for their populations and it is for NHS boards to agree appropriate funding of care providers within their board geographical area.

  A wide range of health professionals are needed to care for patients in palliative care and this care can be provided in a variety of settings, including patient’s homes, hospitals, care homes and in the independent sector via hospices, which are partly funded by the NHS.

Health

Gil Paterson (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the average annual number is of people receiving either generalist or specialist palliative care.

Shona Robison: The information requested is not held centrally. Palliative care can be provided in a variety of settings, including patient’s homes, hospitals, care homes and in the independent healthcare sector via hospices.

Health

Gil Paterson (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how much it costs to train a palliative care generalist.

Gil Paterson (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how much it costs to train a palliative care specialist.

Shona Robison: The information requested is not held centrally. A wide range of health professionals are needed to care for patients in palliative care and this care can be provided in a variety of settings including patient’s homes, hospitals, care homes and in the independent health care sector via hospices.

Health

Gil Paterson (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what costs are associated with delivering Living and Dying Well: A national action plan for palliative and end of life care in Scotland .

Shona Robison: NHS boards are responsible for the planning and provision of NHS services for their populations and it is for NHS boards to agree appropriate funding of care providers within their board geographical area.

  Funding of £3 million per year has been made available for the implementation of Living and Dying Well to fund a Directed Enhanced Service to support improvements in generalist palliative care. The funding is focussed on general practices with the aim of improving generalist palliative care for all, regardless of age, diagnosis or location.

  In addition to this, £500,000 development funding was provided in 2008-09 for use centrally and to support NHS boards in the development of delivery plans. Further additional funding of £120,000 in 2008-09 and £500,000 in 2009-10 was made available to support implementation of the plan, to ensure that generalist palliative care was supported and to ensure the development of care in community based settings.

Healthcare Associated Infection

Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive , further to the answer to question S3W-28470 by Nicola Sturgeon on 5 November 2009, what progress has been made with establishing a norovirus reference laboratory following the HAI Task Force meeting on 8 December 2009.

Nicola Sturgeon: The HAI Task Force considered a detailed paper prepared by Health Protection Scotland (HPS) at its meetings on 30 September 2009 and 8 December 2009, and a copy of the paper has been placed in Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. number 50022). The Task Force concluded there would be no defined public health benefit at this time in establishing a norovirus reference laboratory for Scotland and that the position should be kept under review.

Housing

Mary Mulligan (Linlithgow) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many evictions were carried out by each housing association in 2008-09.

Alex Neil: Information on the number of eviction actions raised and outcomes reached in each housing association in Scotland is published online annually by the Scottish Housing Regulator, as part of their statistical tables which can be accessed through the following link:

  http://www.scottishhousingregulator.gov.uk/stellent/groups/public/documents/webpages/shr_statisticstables2008-09.hcsp#TopOfPage.

  The number of evictions carried out by each housing association in 2008-09 can be found in the spreadsheet A10a: "Evictions by peer group" on the sheet 2008-09. This lists both those where vacant possession was obtained and technical evictions where the tenant was reinstated at the same property following eviction.

Housing

Mary Mulligan (Linlithgow) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many evictions were carried out by each local authority in 2008-09.

Alex Neil: Information on the number of eviction actions raised and outcomes reached in each local authority is published online annually as part of the statistical publication Housing Statistics for Scotland – Evictions, which can be accessed using the following link:

  http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Statistics/Browse/Housing-Regeneration/HSfS/Evictions.

  The number of evictions carried out by each local authority in 2008-09 can be found in the spreadsheet "Evictions of local authority tenants". This is presented in the time series "tsEvictionsFinyear" and in the table "TblLADetail" by selecting the year 2008-09.

Housing

Mary Mulligan (Linlithgow) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many evictions were carried out by social landlords in (a) 2006-07, (b) 2007-08 and (c) 2008-09.

Alex Neil: (a) In 2006-07, there were 1,807 evictions carried out by social landlords. One thousand and fifty five of these were against local authority tenants and 752 against housing association tenants. There were an additional 368 technical evictions by housing associations where a new post-decree tenancy was granted.

  (b) In 2007-08, there were 2,152 evictions carried out by social landlords. One thousand, two hundred and twenty one of these were against local authority tenants and 931 against housing association tenants. There were an additional 510 technical evictions by housing associations where a new post-decree tenancy was granted.

  (c) In 2008-09, there were 1,790 evictions carried out by social landlords. Eight hundred and ninety six of these were against local authority tenants and 894 against housing association tenants. There were an additional 490 technical evictions by housing associations where a new post-decree tenancy was granted.

Housing

John Wilson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what organisations have received funding under the £70 million lending facility offered by the European Investment Bank and the Housing Finance Corporation and how much each has received.

Alex Neil: I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-29860, on 11 January 2010. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx .

Housing

John Wilson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what organisations applied unsuccessfully for funding under the £70 million lending facility offered by the European Investment Bank and the Housing Finance Corporation.

Alex Neil: The Scottish Government does not hold this information. Decisions about whether or not to apply to borrow money, and whether to lend money, are matters for the boards and committees that govern individual housing associations and lenders.

Housing

Mary Mulligan (Linlithgow) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what progress there has been in establishing a housing investment bank.

Alex Neil: The Scottish Government is exploring possible options, considering the potential scope and role for a housing investment bank and sounding out stakeholders.

Housing

John Wilson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-29915 by Alex Neil on 6 January 2010, on what risk basis the Scottish Housing Regulator will determine its regulatory engagement with registered social landlords.

Alex Neil: I have asked Michael Cameron, Acting Chief Executive of the Scottish Housing Regulator to respond.

  His response is as follows:

  We identify the risks each registered social landlord (RSL) presents to our regulatory purpose. The main risks to our purpose are likely to be:

  financial failure in an RSL;

  stock quality and investment failures, and

  governance failures leading to, and arising from, mismanagement and misconduct, and poor service quality.

Housing

John Wilson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-29109 by John Swinney on 1 December 2009, how assessments of progress are being made in relation to affordable housing by local authorities.

John Swinney: With regard to assessments of progress in relation to affordable housing paid for or supported by local authorities, we do not currently hold information centrally on properties funded wholly or partly by second home council tax funds. However, Scottish Government Regional Housing Investment Teams liaise with local authority partners over the use of council tax second homes monies both as part of Strategic Housing Investment Plans discussions and more regular programme management discussions. Details of affordable housing supported by local authorities, including the new Council Housing Building programme, are published in quarterly statistics on our website and provide details of site starts and completions:

  http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Statistics/Browse/Housing-Regeneration/HSfS/KeyInfo.

Livestock

John Scott (Ayr) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions its officials have had with the European Commission regarding new cross-compliance enforcement procedures, particularly in relation to livestock penalties.

Richard Lochhead: Officials from Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland met with Commission officials in February 2009 to discuss proposed changes to discuss proposals to revise the cross-compliance payment reduction systems as a result of the 2008 audits in England and Wales.

  The Commission made it clear at this meeting that they expected the majority of cross-compliance breaches to result in a 3% payment reduction otherwise significant disallowance (EC fines) would apply. This approach was further confirmed and clarified in the Commission audit letters to Wales and later to Northern Ireland following their audit in spring 2009.

Livestock

John Scott (Ayr) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-27485 by Richard Lochhead on 1 October 2009, whether it will permit producers to carry out, record and report within-business moves of sheep more than five miles from the main holding on a batch basis following the introduction of EU Regulation 21/2004 on the identification of sheep and goats.

Richard Lochhead: The Scottish Government is still considering this issue in the wider context of the rules to be introduced regarding the new provisions of EU Regulation 21/2004. Once decisions have been made, guidance will be issued to all sheep and goat keepers explaining the requirements.

Livestock

John Scott (Ayr) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive, with reference to EU Regulation 21/2004 on the identification of sheep and goats, whether the implementation of critical control points will be dependent on the introduction of a fully funded central database and, if so, whether it will provide that funding.

Richard Lochhead: Implementation of critical control points (CCP’s) is not dependant on the introduction of a new database or continued use of the existing animal movement database. CCP’s are being introduced to assist with the recording of individual animals for the purpose of completing holding registers and movement documents; the main purpose of CCPs is not to provide individual information to a central database.

Marine (Scotland) Bill

Liam McArthur (Orkney) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it plans to produce guidance on the meaning of equivalent environmental benefit as referred to in section 72(4)(b) of the Marine (Scotland) Bill.

Liam McArthur (Orkney) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what types of benefits will be included in a definition of equivalent environmental benefit as referred to in section 72(4)(b) of the Marine (Scotland) Bill.

Richard Lochhead: Marine Scotland will issue general guidance on how equivalent environmental benefit could be interpreted, and key environmental and industry stakeholders will be consulted on this guidance.

  It is not be possible to specify in guidance each and every possibility which may arise and equivalent environmental benefit will in practice need be assessed on a case-by-case basis.

Marine (Scotland) Bill

Liam McArthur (Orkney) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how frequently it expects the exception under section 85(1)(b) of the Marine (Scotland) Bill to be disapplied by marine conservation orders in order to restrict the generation of renewable electricity in marine protected areas.

Richard Lochhead: It is not possible to predict how frequently the exception in section 85(1)(b) of the Scottish Marine Bill will be disapplied as part of the marine conservation order process. Scottish Ministers do not intend to disapply section 85(1)(b) as a matter of course and would require a good case for such action. Such disapplication would require the consent of Parliament.

  The generation of marine renewable energy is a priority for the Scottish Government, as is the conservation of marine biodiversity and cultural heritage. The Scottish Marine Bill provides for a planning regime that takes all these priorities into account. I believe it is right that the Scottish Government and Parliament should have this power to protect important marine features, even if the power is very rarely exercised.

Marine (Scotland) Bill

Liam McArthur (Orkney) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how existing leasing arrangements for renewables installations will be taken into account by the designation process for marine protected areas under the Marine (Scotland) Bill.

Richard Lochhead: There will usually be an opportunity in the new MPA process for other government departments, key stakeholders and other interested parties, to feed into the MPA development process before sites are taken to the stage of full public consultation.

  Any existing lease holders will have the opportunity to raise any concerns, and these concerns can form part of the consideration under sections 59(5) and 61(3)(b) of the Bill for the site proposal.

  It is Scottish ministers’ policy that there will be a presumption of use within the new MPAs, unless there is a good case for doing otherwise.

Marine (Scotland) Bill

Peter Peacock (Highlands and Islands) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what opportunity it will give to licensees to put their case to the Scottish Ministers before a licence is suspended, revoked or varied under section 23 of the Marine (Scotland) Bill.

Peter Peacock (Highlands and Islands) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what provision it will make for reasons to be given to licensees for decisions to suspend, revoke or vary a licence under section 23 of the Marine (Scotland) Bill.

Richard Lochhead: A marine licence will only be suspended, revoked or varied, if through compliance monitoring or a complaint, Marine Scotland believes that a breach has been made. If it is not an emergency situation the licensee may be asked to temporarily suspend operations and to provide a response before any final decision is taken. All licensees will be kept fully informed through dialogue and in writing of the reasons why a licence has been varied, suspended or revoked.

Marine (Scotland) Bill

Peter Peacock (Highlands and Islands) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what safeguards it will put in place to ensure the independence and impartiality of decision making on the suspension, revocation or variation of a licence under section 23 of the Marine (Scotland) Bill.

Richard Lochhead: Decisions on the suspension, revocation or variation of a licence under section 23 will be taken on evidence. All decisions taken by Marine Scotland and the evidence on which they are based will be subject to public scrutiny through the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 and The Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004. Also, the Marine Bill provides for a right of appeal under section 52.

Marine (Scotland) Bill

Peter Peacock (Highlands and Islands) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what provision it will make for reasons to be given to applicants for a licensing decision under section 22 of the Marine (Scotland) Bill.

Richard Lochhead: The Scottish Ministers are committed to producing guidance on the new marine licence application process. However, it is expected that in practice the process will involve continuous dialogue between the applicant and Marine Scotland before a licensing decision is reached. In addition, all applicants will be informed in writing of the reasons why an application has been refused or of the conditions that are to be attached to a marine licence.

Marine (Scotland) Bill

Peter Peacock (Highlands and Islands) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what grounds of appeal there will be against decisions taken by the Scottish Ministers under section 22 of the Marine (Scotland) Bill and what powers sheriffs will have in dealing with such appeals.

Richard Lochhead: As currently drafted section 29 of the Marine Bill requires Scottish ministers, by regulation, to make provisions for any person who applies for a marine licence to appeal against a decision under section 22. These regulations must come into force on the day on which Part 3 of the Bill, (marine licensing), comes into force. We anticipate the regulations will make an appeal possible on grounds listed in Section 38(6).

  The Scottish Government will hold a full public consultation on these regulations in due course and this will cover grounds of appeal and the powers of the appellate body. These regulations will be subject to parliamentary approval.

Marine (Scotland) Bill

Peter Peacock (Highlands and Islands) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what grounds of appeal there will be against decisions taken by the Scottish Ministers under section 23 of the Marine (Scotland) Bill to suspend, revoke or vary a licence and what powers sheriffs will have in dealing with such appeals.

Richard Lochhead: As currently drafted, Section 52 of the Marine Bill requires Scottish ministers by regulation to make provisions for any person, who is subject to a notice under section 23 (variation, suspension or revocation notice), section 34 (compliance notice), section 35 (remediation notice), section 46 (stop notice) or section 48 (emergency safety notice) to appeal against that decision. We anticipate the regulations will make an appeal possible on grounds listed in Section 38(6).

  These regulations must come into force on the day on which Part 3 of the Bill, (marine licensing), comes into force.

  The Scottish Government will hold a full public consultation on these regulations in due course and this will cover grounds of appeal and the powers of the appellate body. These regulations will be subject to Parliamentary approval.

Ministerial Engagements

George Foulkes (Lothians) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what official engagements were undertaken by (a) the First Minister, (b) each cabinet secretary and (c) other ministers between 18 December 2009 and 6 January 2010.

John Swinney: The detailed information requested is currently being collated and I will write to the member as soon as the information is available. A copy of the letter will be placed in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. number 50055).

NHS Staff

Gil Paterson (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many practising palliative care specialists there are.

Shona Robison: The information requested is not held centrally. However, information showing NHS staff employed by specialty, including palliative medicine, is published annually as part of the workforce census at 30 September each year.

  This data for 2009 is available at http://www.isdscotland.org/isd/5896.html for medical staff and http://www.isdscotland.org/isd/5352.html#cns for clinical nurse specialists.

  A wide range of health professionals, which includes medical staff and clinical nurse specialists are needed to care for patients in palliative care and this can be provided in a variety of settings including patient’s own homes, hospitals, care homes and in the independent healthcare sector via hospices.

NHS Staff

Gil Paterson (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many palliative care specialist posts there are.

Shona Robison: The information requested is not held centrally. However, information showing NHS staff employed by specialty, including palliative medicine, is published annually as part of the workforce census at 30 September each year.

  This data for 2009 is available at http://www.isdscotland.org/isd/5896.html for medical staff and http://www.isdscotland.org/isd/5352.html#cns for clinical nurse specialists.

  Information about consultant vacancies is available at http://www.isdscotland.org/isd/5899.html. There is no vacancy data available for other relevant grades of staff.

  A wide range of health professionals, which includes medical staff and clinical nurse specialists are needed to care for patients in palliative care and this can be provided in a variety of settings including patient’s own homes, hospitals, care homes and in the independent healthcare sector via hospices.

People with Learning Disabilities

Johann Lamont (Glasgow Pollok) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it is taking to implement the recommendations in the NHS Quality Improvement Scotland report, Tackling Indifference: Healthcare Services for People with Learning Disabilities, National Overview Report - December 2009 .

Shona Robison: The Scottish Government is currently considering how best to implement these recommendations which we accept in full. The report underlines what is absolutely clear to all of us: everyone must have fair and equal access to healthcare, whatever their personal circumstances.

  The same as you? group, tasked with taking forward the government’s learning disability strategy and which I co-chair, has agreed to focus on promoting health improvement and tackle health inequalities for people with learning disabilities and will be involved in implementation.

  I have asked chief executives of all NHS boards, including the special boards, to submit action plans to address significant concerns. To assist with this programme, we have made available £7 million to take forward the change programme.

  A learning network of all the NHS boards will meet on a regular basis to develop policies and share best practice. The first full meeting of this network is scheduled for February.

Public Sector

David McLetchie (Edinburgh Pentlands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will list every (a) non-departmental public body, (b) Executive agency and (c) associated department for each year since 1998.

John Swinney: Details of public bodies which are the responsibility of the Scottish Government and/or the Scottish Parliament are published on the public bodies web pages of the Scottish Government website at http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Government/public-bodies/about/Bodies .

  Prior to the establishment of the public bodies web pages in 2002, detailed information on non-departmental public bodies was published in the annual Cabinet Office publication Public Bodies. Copies of this document are available from:

  http://www.civilservice.gov.uk/about/resources/ndpbs.aspx.

  The Scottish Government public bodies web pages have recently been re-launched and the content of the site continues to be developed. Historical information listing public bodies will be added to the site and I will write to the member as soon as the information is available and place a copy in the Scottish Parliament’s Information Centre (Bib. number 50054).

Radioactive Waste

Rob Gibson (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when it will provide an update on its policy for the long-term management of higher activity radioactive waste arising in Scotland.

Richard Lochhead: I am pleased to announce publication today of a Consultation Document and Environmental Report on Scotland’s Higher Activity Radioactive Waste Policy. The consultation is on a Detailed Statement of our Policy to support long-term near surface, near site storage and disposal facilities so that the radioactive waste is monitorable and retrievable and the need for transporting it over long distances is minimal.

  The consultation has been developed with a wide range of stakeholders who will be sent copies of the documents. I would encourage people to respond to the consultation which can be accessed at:

  www.scotland.gov.uk/HAW-ConDoc or copies can be obtained from:

  RadioactiveWasteTeam@scotland.gsi.gov.uk.

  Copies of the documents will also be placed in the Scottish Parliament’s Information Centre (Bib. number 50061).

Rail Services

Jamie Hepburn (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the rail franchise operator is required to run six-carriage trains on the Glasgow to Edinburgh rail line.

Stewart Stevenson: ScotRail plans the capacity for each service in advance of each timetable change. Services on the Edinburgh to Glasgow via Falkirk High route are currently planned to operate with six carriages in the morning and evening peak. Some off-peak and weekend journeys are also planned to be provided with six carriages.

  Where the planned capacity is not provided, ScotRail is penalised under a performance regime in the franchise agreement. The regime is managed and monitored by Transport Scotland.

Rail Services

Jamie Hepburn (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the passenger rail franchise requires specific capacity for particular services.

Stewart Stevenson: Rail services in Scotland are managed and monitored by the Scottish Government agency, Transport Scotland, and operated by ScotRail through a Franchise Agreement.

  ScotRail prepares a train plan containing the total seating plus standing capacity for each service on a weekday, Saturday and Sunday. Its obligation is to plan the best allocation of its entire train fleet to passenger services that is reasonably practicable. It should ensure, so far as possible, that if excess demand occurs, it is not concentrated on any particular route or passenger service.

  The train plan is submitted to Transport Scotland for approval. Once agreed, if planned capacity is not provided, ScotRail is penalised under a performance regime in the franchise agreement. The regime is managed and monitored by Transport Scotland.

Renewable Energy

Peter Peacock (Highlands and Islands) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what consideration has been given to the Review of the General Permitted Development Order 1992: Final Report in any recent reviews of permitted development rights.

Stewart Stevenson: The Scottish Government’s current priorities are householder permitted development and domestic microgeneration technologies. The recommendations in the Heriot-Watt report in relation to microgeneration were a consideration when drafting the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (Domestic Microgeneration) (Scotland) Amendment Order 2009. Householder permitted development was subject to a separate review carried out by Heriot-Watt University.

  We will consider the research findings and recommendations produced by Heriot-Watt University et al from their review of the General Permitted Development Order in their report along with any other relevant information when we are identifying the priorities for taking forward the review of the wider General Permitted Development Order later in 2010.

Road Accidents

Peter Peacock (Highlands and Islands) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive which sections of the A82 it regarded in (a) 2005, (b) 2006, (c) 2007, (d) 2008 and (e) 2009 as being statistically the most likely for accidents.

Stewart Stevenson: Safer road design, improved speed management, continued maintenance and a better provision for vulnerable road users are amongst the steps being taken to reduce numbers of injuries and fatalities on Scotland’s roads. Transport Scotland assesses the safety performance of the trunk road network on an annual basis by screening all locations where three or more accidents have occurred in a three year period. Further investigations are carried out and where appropriate, mitigation measures are installed. The combination of the annual screening, proactive investigations following fatal accident site visits and community safety concerns has resulted in various accident investigation and prevention studies being carried out along the following lengths of the A82:

  2005-06

  Inverness to Tyndrum Route Accident Reduction Plan (RARP).

  2006-07

  Corran Ferry,

  Nevis Bank roundabout to Lochybridge.

  2007-08

  North of Clifton, Tyndrum and B863 junction,

  Glencoe.

  2008-09

  Longman Road, Inverness.

  2009-10

  North of Inveruglas,

  North of Ardvorlich,

  At the A82/A85 junction at Crianlarich,

  Friars Bridge at Inverness,

  Spean Bridge,

  Cuilcheanna at Onich.

Roads

Lewis Macdonald (Aberdeen Central) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive when it expects that the new special roads and trunk roads of the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route will all be open.

Stewart Stevenson: Subject to completing the necessary statutory process, it is hoped to seek suitably qualified contractors in 2010-11. However, the Orders require to be approved by Parliament and assuming that is given, we would need to review the remaining stages of the project, including procurement, before issuing a definitive timetable. We expect construction to start in 2011.

Roads

Lewis Macdonald (Aberdeen Central) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it plans to proceed with the Fastlink between Milltimber and Stonehaven as part of the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route project.

Stewart Stevenson: Yes.

Roads

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many gritters were in operation on the A76 in East Ayrshire between midnight on 21 and midnight on 22 December 2009.

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many gritters were in operation on the A76 in East Ayrshire between midnight on 22 and midnight on 23 December 2009.

Stewart Stevenson: The contractual requirements that our operating company, Amey, has to deliver are set out in a document that is available on the Transport Scotland Website at:

  http://www.transportscotland.gov.uk/files/documents/reports/south-west-unit-third-gen/C-S7P2-SW_Unit_blank.pdf.

  The operating companies are also required to prepare an annual winter service plan and this is also available at:

  http://www.transportscotland.gov.uk/files/documents/roads/SW_Winter_Plan_2009_-_2010.pdf.

  In accordance with Amey’s Winter Service Plan there were two gritters in operation on the A76 trunk road in East Ayrshire on 22, 23 and 24 December. One covering the section from Bellfield Interchange to Crossroads Roundabout and the other covering the section from Crossroads Roundabout to Crawick. These gritters can overlap as may be operationally required.

Roads

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many snow ploughs were in operation on the A76 in East Ayrshire between midnight on 21 and midnight on 22 December 2009.

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many times the A76 in East Ayrshire was cleared by a snow plough between midnight on 23 and midnight on 24 December 2009.

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many snow ploughs were in operation on the A76 in East Ayrshire between midnight on 22 and midnight on 23 December 2009.

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many times the A76 in East Ayrshire was cleared by a snow plough between midnight on 21 and midnight on 22 December 2009.

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many times the A76 in East Ayrshire was cleared by a snow plough between midnight on 22 and midnight on 23 December 2009.

Stewart Stevenson: Two gritter vehicles fitted with snow ploughs were in continuous operation on the A76 trunk road in East Ayrshire on 22, 23 and 24 December. This service was complemented by two further vehicles fitted with snow ploughs which were deployed on the A76 and A77 trunk roads as necessary on these dates. Information about individual deployments on the route are not recorded.

Roads

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many times the A76 in East Ayrshire was treated with grit and salt between midnight on 21 and midnight on 22 December 2009.

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many times the A76 in East Ayrshire was treated with grit and salt between midnight on 23 and midnight on 24 December 2009.

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many times the A76 in East Ayrshire was treated with grit and salt between midnight on 22 and midnight on 23 December 2009.

Stewart Stevenson: The gritter vehicles in operation on the A76 trunk road in East Ayrshire were in continuous operation throughout the period between midnight 21 December and midnight 24 December making "spot" or localised treatments as required.

  Full applications were carried out on 22 December commencing at 14.00 hours; on 23 December commencing at 20.00 hours and on 24 December commencing at 05.00 hours and 18.00 hours. After these treatments the vehicles were reloaded and patrols continued.

Roads

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many times pavements and footpaths adjacent to the A76 in (a) New Cumnock and (b) Mauchline were treated with salt and grit between midnight on 21 and midnight on 22 December 2009.

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many times pavements and footpaths adjacent to the A76 in (a) New Cumnock and (b) Mauchline were treated with salt and grit between midnight on 22 and midnight on 23 December 2009.

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what action was taken to clear snow from pavements and footpaths adjacent to the A76 in (a) New Cumnock and (b) Mauchline between midnight on 22 and midnight on 23 December 2009.

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many times pavements and footpaths adjacent to the A76 in (a) New Cumnock and (b) Mauchline were treated with salt and grit between midnight on 23 and midnight on 24 December 2009.

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what action was taken to clear snow from pavements and footpaths adjacent to the A76 in (a) New Cumnock and (b) Mauchline between midnight on 23 and midnight on 24 December 2009.

Stewart Stevenson: The requirements for clearing snow and gritting pavements and footpaths on the A76 trunk road is set out in paragraph 8.1.5 and appendix 8 of Amey’s Winter Service Plan which is available on the Transport Scotland website at:

  http://www.transportscotland.gov.uk/files/documents/roads/SW_Winter_Plan_2009_-_2010.pdf.

  Specific footpaths adjacent to the A76 trunk road in New Cumnock and Mauchline should be cleared within two hours of snowfall ceasing during the period 06.00 hours and 18.00 hours.

  In New Cumnock and Mauchline between midnight on 21 December and midnight on 24 December snow continued to fall and as such no clearing of snow from pavements and footpaths was undertaken.

Roads

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many gritters were in operation on the A77 south of Ayr between midnight on 21 and midnight on 22 December 2009.

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many gritters were in operation on the A77 south of Ayr between midnight on 22 and midnight on 23 December 2009.

Stewart Stevenson: The contractual requirements that our operating company, Amey, has to deliver are set out in a document that is available on the Transport Scotland Website at:

  http://www.transportscotland.gov.uk/files/documents/reports/south-west-unit-third-gen/C-S7P2-SW_Unit_blank.pdf.

  The operating companies are also required to prepare an annual winter service plan and this is also available at:

  http://www.transportscotland.gov.uk/files/documents/roads/SW_Winter_Plan_2009_-_2010.pdf.

  In accordance with Amey’s Winter Service Plan there were two gritters in operation on the A77 trunk road south of Ayr on 22, 23 and 24 December. One covering the section from Ayr to Girvan and the other covering the section from Girvan to Stranraer. These gritters can overlap as may be operationally required.

Roads

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many snow ploughs were in operation on the A77 south of Ayr between midnight on 21 and midnight on 22 December 2009.

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many snow ploughs were in operation on the A77 south of Ayr between midnight on 22 and midnight on 23 December 2009.

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many times the A77 south of Ayr was cleared by a snow plough between midnight on 21 and midnight on 22 December 2009.

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many times the A77 south of Ayr was cleared by a snow plough between midnight on 23 and midnight on 24 December 2009.

Stewart Stevenson: Two gritter vehicles fitted with snow ploughs were in continuous operation on the A77 trunk road south of Ayr on 22, 23 and 24 December. This service was complemented by two further vehicles fitted with snow ploughs which were deployed on the A77 and A76 trunk roads as necessary on these dates. Information about individual deployments on the route are not recorded.

Roads

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many times the A77 south of Ayr was treated with grit and salt between midnight on 21 and midnight on 22 December 2009.

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many times the A77 in south of Ayr was treated with grit and salt between midnight on 22 and midnight on 23 December 2009.

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many times the A77 south of Ayr was treated with grit and salt between midnight on 23 and midnight on 24 December 2009.

Stewart Stevenson: The gritter vehicles in operation on the A77 trunk road south of Ayr were in continuous operation throughout the period between midnight 21 December and midnight 24 December making "spot" or localised treatments as required.

  Full applications were carried out on 22 December commencing at 14.00 hours; on 23 December commencing at 20.00 hours and on 24 December commencing at 05.00 hours and 18.00 hours. After these treatments the vehicles were reloaded and patrols continued.

Roads

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many times pavements and footpaths adjacent to the A77 in (a) Ballantrae, (b) Lendalfoot, (c) Girvan, (d) Kirkoswald, (e) Maybole and (f) Minishant were treated with salt and grit between midnight on 21 and midnight on 22 December 2009.

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many times pavements and footpaths adjacent to the A77 in (a) Ballantrae, (b) Lendalfoot, (c) Girvan, (d) Kirkoswald, (e) Maybole and (f) Minishant were treated with salt and grit between midnight on 22 and midnight on 23 December 2009.

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what action was taken to clear snow from pavements and footpaths adjacent to the A77 in (a) Ballantrae, (b) Lendalfoot, (c) Girvan, (d) Kirkoswald, (e) Maybole and (f) Minishant between midnight on 21 and midnight on 22 December 2009.

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what action was taken to clear snow from pavements and footpaths adjacent to the A77 in (a) Ballantrae, (b) Lendalfoot, (c) Girvan, (d) Kirkoswald, (e) Maybole and (f) Minishant between midnight on 22 and midnight on 23 December 2009.

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many times pavements and footpaths adjacent to the A77 in (a) Ballantrae, (b) Lendalfoot, (c) Girvan, (d) Kirkoswald, (e) Maybole and (f) Minishant were treated with salt and grit between midnight on 23 and midnight on 24 December 2009.

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what action was taken to clear snow from pavements and footpaths adjacent to the A77 in (a) Ballantrae, (b) Lendalfoot, (c) Girvan, (d) Kirkoswald, (e) Maybole and (f) Minishant between midnight on 23 and midnight on 24 December 2009.

Stewart Stevenson: The requirements for clearing snow and gritting pavements and footpaths on the A77 trunk road is set out in paragraph 8.1.5 and appendix 8 of Amey’s Winter Service Plan which is available on the Transport Scotland website at:

  http://www.transportscotland.gov.uk/files/documents/roads/SW_Winter_Plan_2009_-_2010.pdf.

  The sections of footway on the A77 at High Street, Maybole and two sections of Dalrymple Street, Girvan are assigned as Category "A". These sections were treated on 22, 23 and 24 December.

  The remainder of the footways in Maybole and Girvan, together with those in Ballantrae, Lendalfoot, Kirkoswald and Minishant are assigned as either Category "B" or "C" and should be cleared within two hours of snowfall ceasing during the period 06.00 hours and 18.00 hours. However, as snowfall continued between midnight on 21 December and midnight on 24 December, no clearing of snow from these pavements and footpaths was undertaken.

Roads

Alison McInnes (North East Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive when it will lay before the Parliament the orders necessary to allow work to commence on the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route.

Stewart Stevenson: The Orders for the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route were laid before Parliament on the 18 January 2010.

Roads

Iain Smith (North East Fife) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive when it will announce its decision on the proposed A92 Road Orders in relation to the A92 east of Newport-on-Tay, Fife.

Stewart Stevenson: The Report of the Public Local Inquiry has been received by my officials and is currently being considered. A decision will be announced as soon as possible and the report of the Inquiry will be made available at that time.

Roads

Murdo Fraser (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had with the UK Government and its appropriate agencies regarding resources and supplies of grit and salt should these be required.

John Swinney: In order to provide consistent advice to the UK’s main salt suppliers, which supply to councils and trunk road operators across the UK, a "UK Salt Cell" has been established. The UK Salt Cell brings together the Department for Transport (Chair), the Scottish Government, the Welsh Assembly Government, Transport Scotland, the Highways Agency, COSLA, the Local Government Association and other relevant agencies and departments. It meets twice-weekly to monitor the salt supply and delivery position across the UK, and to advise suppliers on the most effective distribution of available salt supplies. To support that process, Scottish Government officials are also in regular contact with Department for Transport and colleagues.

Schools

Alison McInnes (North East Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive, with reference to its news release on 26 November 2009, More new schools , on what grounds one further primary school in Glasgow has been included among the primary schools allocated funding through the school building programme.

Alison McInnes (North East Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive, with reference to its news release on 26 November 2009, More new schools , what criteria qualified the one further primary school in Glasgow for inclusion among the primary schools allocated funding through the school building programme.

Keith Brown: The following criteria were taken into consideration by the Scottish Government and COSLA in identifying the 21 schools announced on 26 November: distribution of needs, nationally, best available information about schools’ condition and "unsuitability" to deliver modern education, schools which are not part of a funded programme already, local authorities’ own priorities and readiness to proceed. Glasgow City council was offered funding support for three primary school projects, reflecting the scale of outstanding need for investment in primary schools in the city.

Schools

Alison McInnes (North East Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive, with reference to its news release on 26 November 2009, More new schools , for what reason the one further primary school in Glasgow included among the primary schools allocated funding through the school building programme is not named.

Keith Brown: Each local authority was invited by the Scottish Government and COSLA to nominate two priority primary projects for consideration. Glasgow City Council was offered funding support for three projects and, since the announcement, has been invited to name a third project to be supported, in addition to Garrowhill and Glendale primary schools.

Schools

Alison McInnes (North East Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive, with reference to its news release on 26 November 2009, More new schools , what negotiations there were regarding the inclusion of one further primary school in Glasgow among the primary schools allocated funding through the school building programme and what role the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning played in such negotiations.

Keith Brown: The announcement was made after engagement and discussion between the Scottish Government and COSLA at both ministerial and official levels.

Schools

Jamie Hepburn (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the provisions of the Schools (Consultation) (Scotland) Bill as passed by the Scottish Parliament on 19 November 2009 pertain to nursery schools.

Adam Ingram: Schedule 1 of the Schools (Consultation) (Scotland) Act, as passed by the Scottish Parliament on 19 November 2009, sets out all of the local authority proposals that relate to the Act’s provisions.  http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/s3/bills/23-Schools/b23bs3-aspassed.pdf .

  Section 135(1) of the Education (Scotland) Act 1980 includes authority-managed nursery schools in the definition of the word "school", therefore all of the proposals in schedule 1 of the Schools (Consultation) (Scotland) Act that relate to a school includes, by definition, nursery schools.

Scottish Futures Trust

Jeremy Purvis (Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what progress has been made on establishing the Finance and Investment arm of the Scottish Futures Trust.

John Swinney: I have asked Barry White, Chief Executive of the Scottish Futures Trust, to respond. His response is as follows:

  The SFT is likely to make its first investment, in a hub company, in 2010. Work is ongoing on the corporate structure required to support that investment and others, in accordance with our corporate plan.

Scottish Futures Trust

Jeremy Purvis (Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what work is being carried out by the Finance and Investment arm of the Scottish Futures Trust.

John Swinney: I have asked Barry White, Chief Executive of the Scottish Futures Trust to respond. His response is as follows:

  The Scottish Futures Trust’s (SFT) funding and financing development activities include tax increment financing, National Housing Trust and preparing to invest in hub companies. All these activities are currently carried out by SFT rather than a separately established subsidiary.

Scottish Futures Trust

Jeremy Purvis (Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive, following publication of the Scottish Futures Trust corporate plan 2009-2014, whether it now considers the Scottish Futures Trust to be fully operational.

John Swinney: I refer the member to the answer to S3W-28171 on 18 December 2009. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx .

Scottish Futures Trust

Jeremy Purvis (Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive, following publication of the Scottish Futures Trust corporate plan 2009-2014, whether it expects the Scottish Futures Trust to realise annual savings of £100-£150 million.

John Swinney: The Scottish Futures Trust (SFT) corporate plan 2009-14, published in November 2009, clearly sets out a public commitment to delivering £100-£150 million of benefits per annum. The progress of SFT towards achieving this target will be reported in their annual report for 2009-10 which will be laid before Parliament by the end of 2010 and also made publicly available.

Scottish Futures Trust

Jeremy Purvis (Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive, following publication of the Scottish Futures Trust corporate plan 2009-2014, what proportion of savings and benefits it estimates will be derived from each of the Scottish Futures Trust’s five main areas of activity.

Jeremy Purvis (Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive, following publication of the Scottish Futures Trust corporate plan 2009-2014, whether each of the Scottish Futures Trust’s five main areas of activity has been set individual targets for savings and benefits.

John Swinney: I have asked Barry White, Chief Executive of the Scottish Futures Trust, to respond. His response is as follows:

  As the Scottish Futures Trust’s (SFT) involvement in projects will often bridge more than one of SFT’s five main areas of activity, savings and benefits will be calculated and published as an aggregate. The progress of SFT towards achieving this target will be set out in our annual reports.

Scottish Futures Trust

Jeremy Purvis (Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what public and private organisations have been involved in discussions with the Scottish Futures Trust, as stated on page four of the Scottish Futures Trust corporate plan 2009-2014.

John Swinney: I have asked Barry White, Chief Executive of the Scottish Futures Trust, to respond. His response is as follows:

  To maximise its impact, the Scottish Futures Trust (SFT) has been involved in a large number of discussions with a very wide range of public and private organisations across Scotland and internationally. To date SFT have had discussions with all 32 Scottish local authorities, seven area health boards, Scottish Government agencies such as Transport Scotland, Scottish Water, and with individual companies as well as with industry representative bodies such as CBI Scotland, Chambers of Commerce and the Scottish Building Federation.

Scottish Futures Trust

Jeremy Purvis (Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive for how many years revenue from the Scottish Government will be the Scottish Futures Trust’s main source of income.

John Swinney: The budget for the Scottish Futures Trust (SFT) has been set by the Scottish Government and their provision up to 2013-14 is set out in the Scottish Futures Trust corporate plan. All budgets are subject to Parliamentary approval. The Management Statement and Financial Memorandum for the Scottish Futures Trust also enables the SFT to charge for services, provided they are agreed in advance with the Scottish Government.

Scottish Futures Trust

Jeremy Purvis (Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive when it considers that the Scottish Futures Trust will be ready to form joint ventures and make investments that will allow other sources of income to be developed.

John Swinney: I have asked Barry White, Chief Executive of the Scottish Futures Trust, to respond. His response is as follows:

  The Scottish Futures Trust is already able to form joint ventures and will do so when appropriate. The work referred to in answers to parliamentary questions S3W-30417 and S3W-30418 on 15 January 2010 may lead to investment opportunities in 2010.

  All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx.

Scottish Futures Trust

Jeremy Purvis (Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what important performance measures will be externally validated, as stated on page six of the Scottish Futures Trust corporate plan 2009-2014.

John Swinney: I have asked Barry White, Chief Executive of the Scottish Futures Trust, to respond. His response is as follows:

  A specific review is being sought on the measurement methods used to assess long term benefits. The findings of this review are expected later in the year.

Scottish Futures Trust

Jeremy Purvis (Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how the Scottish Futures Trust’s objectives, as described in the Scottish Futures Trust corporate plan 2009-2014, differ from those outlined in the Scottish Government news release, Scottish Futures Trust, on 20 May 2008.

John Swinney: I have asked Barry White, Chief Executive of the Scottish Futures Trust (SFT), to respond. His response is as follows:

  SFT has evolved since its formation and continues to evolve and develop, against a changing UK and international backdrop, under the leadership of its board. The May 2008 business case target of £100-£150 million of annual benefits realised through our five core activities continues to guide the corporate and business planning process.

Scottish Futures Trust

Jeremy Purvis (Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it considers that the Scottish Futures Trust is providing "more bang for the people’s bucks", as the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Sustainable Growth stated it would in the Scottish Government news release, Scottish Futures Trust, on 20 May 2008.

John Swinney: I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-24622 on 16 June 2009. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx .

Scottish Futures Trust

Jeremy Purvis (Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what fees are or will be charged by the Scottish Futures Trust to the Scottish Government for the services it provides and how these fees are or will be calculated.

John Swinney: I have asked Barry White, Chief Executive of the Scottish Futures Trust, to respond. His response is as follows:

  The Scottish Futures Trust (SFT) will set out in its annual business plan the cost of the services proposed for each 12 month period. The corporate five-year plan sets out estimates of SFT’s annual budgets for the periods 2011-12 to 2013-14.

Scottish Futures Trust

Jeremy Purvis (Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what deadline has been set for the Scottish Futures Trust’s delivery of £100-£150 million of savings per annum, as stated on page four of the Scottish Futures Trust corporate plan 2009-2014, and what progress has been made toward meeting this target.

John Swinney: I have asked Barry White, Chief Executive of the Scottish Futures Trust, to respond. His response is as follows:

  The target remains and is stated in both the current business plan and the five-year corporate plan. Good progress is being made towards the delivery of benefits and savings and will be published in our annual reports.

Scottish Futures Trust

Jeremy Purvis (Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how and by whom the performance multiplier of a minimum of x7 referred to on page 19 of the Scottish Futures Trust corporate plan 2009-2014 was set.

John Swinney: I have asked Barry White, Chief Executive of the Scottish Futures Trust (SFT), to respond. His response is as follows:

  The x7 multiplier was identified by SFT as a result of analysis of the forecast workload and activities as at November 2009, allowing tangible evidence of progress towards the annual £100-£150 million benefits.

Scottish Futures Trust

Jeremy Purvis (Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the Scottish Futures Trust will be audited by Audit Scotland.

John Swinney: I have asked Barry White, Chief Executive of the Scottish Futures Trust (SFT), to respond. His response is as follows:

  SFT’s accounts will be audited by independent auditors appointed by the board in accordance with the Companies Act. These are laid before the Scottish Parliament prior to the end of the calendar year.

Scottish Futures Trust

Bill Butler (Glasgow Anniesland) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will publish details of any bonus schemes in place for Scottish Futures Trust staff.

John Swinney: I have asked Barry White, Chief Executive of the Scottish Futures Trust, to respond. His response is as follows:

  Scottish Futures Trust has no bonus scheme for its staff.

Scottish Government Ministers

George Foulkes (Lothians) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what journeys have been undertaken by public transport by ministers since 18 December 2009.

John Swinney: The detailed information requested is currently being collated and I will write the member as soon as the information is available. A copy of the letter will be placed in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. number 50056).

Scottish Government Ministers

George Foulkes (Lothians) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive on what occasions the Permanent Secretary of the Scottish Executive was at work in his office between 18 December 2009 and 6 January 2010.

John Swinney: Between 18 December and 6 January, the Permanent Secretary was at work in his office on:

  Friday 18 December 2009

  Monday 21 December 2009

  Tuesday 22 December 2009

  Wednesday 23 December 2009

  Tuesday 29 December 2009

  Thursday 31 December 2009

  Tuesday 6 January 2010.

Scottish Land Court

Peter Peacock (Highlands and Islands) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many cases regarding hill tracks have been brought before the Scottish Land Court.

Fergus Ewing: The information requested is not held centrally.

Smoking

Ken Macintosh (Eastwood) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it will take to help introduce reduced ignition propensity cigarettes, following the publication of Scotland Together: A Study examining fire deaths and injuries in Scotland .

Ken Macintosh (Eastwood) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it is taking to support the European Union in the creation of a European standard for reduced ignition propensity cigarettes.

Fergus Ewing: Scottish ministers support the introduction of any innovation that has the potential to save lives. Product safety matters are reserved to Westminster and the introduction of reduced ignition propensity (RIP) cigarettes must be done within the European legal framework. There is currently no European standard for this product type. However, on 29 November 2007, EU member states endorsed the European Commission’s plan to draw up a standard. The European Standards Body (CEN) is now working to develop a harmonised standard. Although Scottish ministers would support the early introduction of RIP cigarettes, no action can be taken until CEN produces this standard. I have written to Mr Shahid Malik MP, Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Department for Communities and Local Government, offering the support of the Scottish Government to ensure that manufacturers are required to meet this new standard as soon as possible. Scottish Government officials have also been working with the chief fire and rescue adviser to the Westminster Government and have been invited to comment on a draft ISO standard for testing these products to ensure that they self extinguish.

Waste Management

Elaine Murray (Dumfries) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many landfill consignments in 2008 contained ozone-depleting substances, including chlorofluorocarbons and hydrochlorofluorocarbons.

Elaine Murray (Dumfries) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many tonnes of ozone-depleting substances were dumped in landfill in each of the last three years.

Elaine Murray (Dumfries) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how it monitors the amount of ozone-depleting substances dumped in landfill.

Elaine Murray (Dumfries) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how the Scottish Environment Protection Agency monitors the accuracy of special waste landfill consignment notes, specifically in relation to insulation containing ozone-depleting substances.

Elaine Murray (Dumfries) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how the Scottish Environment Protection Agency files and subsequently accesses copies of special waste landfill consignment notes.

Richard Lochhead: This question, and your other related questions (S3W-30119, S3W-30120, S3W-30142 and S3W-30143), are operational issues for SEPA and I have asked the Chief Executive, Campbell Gemmell, to reply to you in each case.

  All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx.

Water Services

Gil Paterson (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many households suffered a loss of water supply in November 2009, broken down by (a) Scottish Parliament constituency and (b) local authority area.

Stewart Stevenson: This information is not held centrally. I have asked the Chief Executive of Scottish Water to reply directly to you.

Water Services

Gil Paterson (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many households suffered a loss of water supply in December 2009, broken down by (a) Scottish Parliament constituency and (b) local authority area.

Stewart Stevenson: This information is not held centrally. I have asked the Chief Executive of Scottish Water to reply directly to you.

Weather

George Foulkes (Lothians) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what additional finance will be made available to local authorities to deal with the consequences of the extended period of snow and low temperatures.

John Swinney: In line with the partnership working set out in the concordat, the Scottish Government is in regular contact with our local government partners to discuss a range of financial pressures on their budgets, including the recent severe winter weather, and consider how these can be accommodated. We will continue to work collaboratively with all councils to try to assist with any difficulties they have.

Young People

Johann Lamont (Glasgow Pollok) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many young people accessed employment through Inspiring Scotland in 2009.

Michael Russell: Inspiring Scotland is a venture philanthropy organisation which aims to bring public, private and charitable funds to deliver on key social issues. It brings together both funding for services and capacity building for organisations in which it invests. The 14:19 Fund focuses on young people aged 14 to 19 who struggle to enter education, employment or training. The most recent 14:19 Fund Investor Report that provides detail on the first nine months’ activity (January to September 2009) shows that 2,427 young people were actively involved in services, of whom 475 had achieved positive destinations, with 23% going into employment. The Investor Report can be accessed at www.inspiringscotland.org.uk and is available through the Scottish Parliament Information Centre, (Bib. number 47378).